So glad you've come...

Welcome to Tigressland, my own personal little corner of the Internet where I hang out expressing my views about the smaller things in life. No controversy here (I'm saving that for the book lol) just the everyday minutiae that add up to my rather unpredictable, but always fun, life! So pull up a cushion and come chill.....and follow! We bloggers love it when you follow ;-) ~Tigress

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Thursday, 28 May 2015

Charity begins...with books :)

Now as I have possibly mentioned once or
twice before, I have a somewhat addictive personality. Especially when it comes
to books and /or sorting things.

I think I may have an issue here

You see, in my infinite wisdom, I decided
to begin doing some volunteer work at one of the local second-hand stores. And
I just happened to randomly select the one with nearly floor to ceiling
bookshelves...randomly....ok it was the only one I went in but that is
completely beside the point.

There were shelves of them softly
whispering my name.

And they were saying: “Tidy me, sort
me...love me”

How could I not offer my time after pleas
like that?

So I signed up and got busy. And so far, it’s
just like a Maccas commercial: I’m loving it! It hasn’t been all about
the books though; not my choice initially, but I have since discovered that my
organizational bent can be aimed in just about any direction to great enjoyment.

If my body would allow...I’d probably be
there every day.

I'm even learning about clothes. After an initial conversation with our
visual merchandiser for Western Australia, I was questioned on my knowledge of
fashion clothing and top labels and such. Considering I have about as must grace
and sophistication as your average bogan (if you’re not from Australasia...Google
the term, it will provide hours of entertainment), I could not wax informative
on that subject. I have enough trouble differentiating chain store brands let
alone discussing the finer points of catwalk haute couture.

“Don’t worry, there’s a list” she said
smiling comfortingly. Oh thank God for that. But I can’t say that I've ended up
playing with the clothes much (or that I'm especially heartbroken about this). I've been
a tad busy elsewhere reorganising the children’s section, lining the cups up in sets (you
have no idea how satisfying that is), organising the linen and craftwares, and
generally tidying and reorganizing to create more space.

Now the interesting thing that happens when
you create more space is that you can fit more stuff in the shop without the
store looking messy or overcrowded; which in turn translates to the customers
having more choice; which in turn translates to higher sales figures.

Our store sold over $1000 the Saturday
before last. This is the first time our store has done this.

I’m just casually putting that out there.

But that doesn't mean the other volunteers
aren't doing a wonderful job as well...it’s just that you need enough of us to
be able to make the real magic happen. A mad organiser can’t focus on getting the
shop all ship shape and Bristol fashion if he/she has to stop every five
minutes to serve a customer or sort an incoming donation. It’s a team thing;
the bigger the team, the more you can get done. Especially if you play to the
strengths of each team member. But, I have t say, there is also a ‘logic’
factor in it as well.

For me, for example, it was completely
illogical to sell videos when we sell about one every six months but had
shitloads of the damn things around the store. The way I saw it, in the
same space we had a $1 video we could have had a $3-4 book or two $3 DVDs. It
kinda did my head in. So now the videos are being sold off 3 for $1 (as are
cassette tapes) and even now they are not exactly flying out the door, but
removing them to the sale table has made room for all the DVDs that were hiding
out the back. And they do sell so a much wiser use of space I believe. It’s tweaks like that, that can buy you a
whole heaps of space to work wonders in. It and has been wonderful to reawaken my floor supervisor experience and put it to good use here.

Not so in today’s world. My store for example sells no
stained/pilled/damaged clothing (this goes overseas to those in need or for
rags/shredding [for furniture stuffing]), no stained/damaged crockery or linen
and no books with yellowed pages or significant signs or wear.

Which means all the books (not on the sale
table) are in good nick.

And relatively recent

And the type I would read.

Oooooh, lordy.

The fact that I haven’t bought damn near
all of them is testimony not only to my strong will...but also to my strong
sense of self preservation and desire for pre-matrimonial harmony. The Kevman
loves books too, just not on every wall of the house.

But every Tuesday and Friday I get to pat
them and arrange them and read their blurbs. And sometimes I get to recommend
them to potential book Mummies and Daddies and send them off to loving homes.

It’s a very satisfying part of the job. But
even I have to admit, it’s not the most important.

What really matters is that I get to work
for a wonderful cause that generates income for those in need. Now that is the best feeling of all.

Sometimes the best jobs you don’t get paid
for in money

Have a great one!

~Tigress

P.S. Got some spare time? Why not volunteer! Help at a local second hand charity store or animal rescue organisation; help with kids' sport or youth/teen projects; visit elderly people; knit/crochet for Syrian refugee children; sew burial gowns from old wedding dresses for Angel Babies....the list is endless, get on the Internet and start looking!